Abstract
From 1838, the border between the Danish duchy of Holstein and the German <em>Länder</em> was patrolled by a corps of border gendarmes with a mixture of duties: as policemen, as customs officials, and as soldiers.<sup><a id="xrn1" href="#n1">1</a></sup> Following the Second Schleswig War in 1864, in which the Monarchy was defeated by the German <em>Bund</em>, the duchies were ceded to the King of Prussia and the Emperor of Austria, and the Danish-German border was accordingly moved north from the Elbe to the Kongeå. So were the gendarmes. Although differently configured and under different names, the institution of a border gendarmerie continued to exist until 1969. A gendarmerie force was likewise set up in the duchy of Schleswig in 1851 as a means to subdue the political unrest in the duchy following the First Schleswig War (the Three Years’ War 1848–1851). The Schleswig gendarmes were disbanded after the Second Schleswig War (1864). Lastly, the Blue Gendarmes existed 1885–1894 to assist the police in domestic security matters. The pros and cons of a gendarmerie were discussed on several occasions in the Kingdom of Denmark during the 19<sup>th</sup> century. On the one hand, a gendarmerie force would undoubtedly increase the police powers in general and might, in particular, serve as an alternative to having military personnel assisting the police in coping with riots and mass events. On the other hand, setting up a gendarmerie would incur large expenses, and the idea has traditionally been considered undemocratic and “Un-Danish”. This paper outlines the history of gendarmeries in Denmark and discusses this question of “Un-Danishness” from a historical as well as a contemporary, comparative perspective, drawing on recent studies of gendarmeries in other countries. We argue that the history of the Danish gendarmeries shows that establishing a Danish gendarmerie force today would indeed be “Un-Danish” and just as contrary to democratic traditions as it was in the 19<sup>th</sup> century. It would thus represent a “deviation from the historically given foundation”.
Highlights
From the gens d’armes evolved what we today associate with the concept, namely, in the strict sense, “a police force with a formal military status ... which is at least partly answerable to the ministry of defence,” or, in a broader sense, “any police force with certain military characteristics relating to organizational structure, institutional affiliation, doctrine or weaponry” – with or without formal military status (Lutterbeck 2013: 7–8)
In the 1890s, the Border Gendarmerie appears to have developed into a well-disciplined military police force, but the new generations of gendarmes suffered under a strong conservative leadership, low salaries, and a degenerated reputation due to the unpopular Blue Gendarmes who had entered the scene
The opposition parties voted against the act in Parliament, arguing that they would not assist the Social Democratic/Radical Left government in establishing a “Blue Gendarmerie Force”, just like the one the Rightish Estrup government had had in the 1880s and the 1890s (Landstingstidende 1938–1939: 415)
Summary
The new Border Gendarmerie was, a military entity in itself, composed of resources from three existing regiments in Holstein including 22 corporals, 22 cavalry gendarmes, one quartermaster, and three officers – one being the corps’ commander, Rittmeister Justus von Unzer. The command language of the border gendarmes was German, but in the years following the First Schleswig War, the previously very close relationship between the corps and the German-speaking officials in the duchies suffered under the harsh repression by the new democratic Danish government following the end of absolutism in 1848.
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